Relations between Austria and Slovenia

The events of the 20th century and their consequences had a fatal impact on the social context, cross-border relations and geographical space spanning Austria and Slovenia. They made a particularly large impact on the Slovene ethnic community in Austrian Carinthia and Styria, and on the German-speaking community in Slovenia.

Historical events that have left the area deeply traumatised and which gave rise to a contradictory and often conflicting culture of remembrance include: the post-World War I border disputes, the so-called “Carinthian Defence Fight” or “Fight for the Northern Slovene Border” on the Slovenian side, Nazism and the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia, the Partisan resistance, the Yugoslav occupation of Carinthia, and the new border disputes following World War II, the post-war massacres and the communist regime in Slovenia, the issue of minority rights of the Carinthian Slovenes, Austrian-Yugoslav (Slovenian) relations during the Cold War, and also the issue of the “German-speaking minority” in Slovenia after 1991.

Stereotypes shape the relations between the neighbouring countries and their policies towards minorities

The negative and even hostile image of Germans/Austrians in Slovenia and Slovenes/Yugoslavs in Austria is the result of interpreting history through a national and/or nationalist prism. In Europe, the notions that developed in the mid-nineteenth century, at the beginning of the formation of modern nation states, still prevail. National stereotypes between neighbouring nations play a big role in this. The “national” understanding of social developments in the Alpine-Adriatic geographical space was reinforced in the twentieth century with the two world wars, and is only slowly and with difficulty receding into the background. When there are certain “disturbances” in the relationship between two neighbouring countries, these feelings come to the surface, mainly in the form of mistrust towards the neighbouring nation. The divergence of political opinions is particularly evident with regard to the issue of the attitude of the Republic of Austria towards the Slovenian ethnic community in Carinthia and Styria and the attitude of the Republic of Slovenia towards the German-speaking ethnic community in Slovenia.

German-speaking community in Slovenia

It is well known that the umbrella organisation of the German-speaking ethnic community in Slovenia is not satisfied with the regulation in the bilateral cultural agreement between Slovenia and Austria, which in its Article 15 refers to the inclusion of cultural, educational, scientific and other projects of the German-speaking population in Slovenia in inter-state relations. In addition, the Austrian Parliament has repeatedly called for the recognition and regulation of the minority rights of the German-speaking community as are already in place for the Italian and Hungarian national communities living in Slovenia.

Currently, the Ministry of Culture has a Working Group for a permanent dialogue with representatives of the German-speaking ethnic community in the Republic of Slovenia, which is important as it gives the community an interlocutor an the national level. I see the fact that the Austrian and Slovenian peoples were unable to find a common language after the tragedy of the two world wars as a historical defeat. The historical and cultural links between the two countries make it essential that the German-speaking community in Slovenia be preserved and nurtured. To this end, rapid steps forward are needed.

The near disappearance of the German minority in Slovenia

After the World War II, the German minority in Slovenia suffered the fate of many German communities across Europe. Because of their Nazification prior to and during the World War II and their collaboration with the Nazis, the Germans in Slovenia have been collectively blamed and often victims of vengeful acts for the crimes committed by Hitler’s regime. After the expulsion of most Germans in 1945 and 1946 (most of them fled for fear of retaliation by the new authorities, but there were also numerous extrajudicial killings, executions, harsh treatment in camps and forced evictions), only a small number of members of the pre-war German national minority remained in Slovenia.

The German community in Slovenia after World War II

The German community in Slovenia (i.e. persons of Austrian and German nationality and persons with German as mother tongue) in the post-World War II period was characterised by its small number, dispersion and, to a large extent, “non-nativeness”, as around 70% of those who declared themselves to be German-speaking or Austrian or German in the 2002 census were not born in Slovenia. In terms of ethnic vitality, i.e. sheer number, group life and the preserving of an ethnic community, the German-speakers do not seem to be in a good position to achieve the conditions for a successful long-term survival.

The dispersed settlement of Germans, Austrians and people with German as mother tongue has “some practical opportunities for preserving their own ethnic and cultural identity”. These include the possibility of learning your mother tongue from primary school onwards, where German is the mother tongue, second or elective language. The possibility of learning German exists more or less throughout the territory of the Republic of Slovenia. This practice continues in secondary schools and some colleges.

Since Slovenia’s independence, the Gottscheer community in Občice has been active, particularly in the field of cultural activities.

Let diversity unite Europe

The 10 or so societies and associations that bring together the German-speaking community in Slovenia or are involved in preserving German culture are not unanimous in their views on what protection the community needs. Nevertheless, I believe that state institutions must provide the conditions for the cultural diversity and the diversity of ethnic composition (e.g. the remnants of the Gottscheers and the Germans) in Slovenia to be preserved and nurtured. The recommendations and opinions of the Commission of Experts on the implementation of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in Slovenia also go in this direction.

Today, the geographical area of Europe includes more than 300 different ethnic, religious and cultural-linguistic national groups, comprising around 104 million people (Europe’s current population totals approximately 900 million). This is why Europe pays special attention to minority issues. Europe’s democratic future lies in recognising Europe’s national communities and its various minorities, and in “generously” addressing the issues involved. Solutions must be found by recognising our common history and the qualities that bind us together and build trust between our peoples. Commitment to rigorous implementation of the legislation adopted ultimately contributes to a more prosperous and attractive Europe for all its citizens.

This article was written within the project The Weight of the past. Heritage of the Multicultural Area: Case Study of Gottschee . The authors acknowledge the project (The Weight of the past. Heritage of the Multicultural Area: Case Study of Gottschee, J6-4612) was financially supported by the Slovenian Research Agency.

Read more about the activities of the Gottscheer native sttlers here.

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On the main road through the village of Občice in the municipality of Dolenjske Toplice stands a restored, blue-painted old farmhouse. Since 1998, it has housed the Society of Native Gottschee Settlers. The society was founded in 1992 and promotes and preserves the cultural heritage of the Gottschee region. The main activities of the society include a folklore and singing group, the publication of the newspaper “Bakh – Pot“, German and Gottscheer language courses and children’s workshops. In 2014, an orchard was planted next to the main building, where old varieties of fruit trees typical of the Gottschee region are preserved. The association also actively participates in the Days of Gottschee Culture, an event starting in 2015 alternately organised by the municipalities of Kočevje, Dolenjske Toplice and Semič.

The redesign of the ethnological collection of the Gottscheers in Občice

Co-workers in the arrangement of the Gottscheer collection

Within the framework of the so-called student project for sustainable development “Ethnological collection of Gottscheers and the walking path among old varieties of fruit trees“, funded by the University of Ljubljana, the already existing ethnological collection and the orchard of old varieties of trees were reinterpreted and redesigned. The students who participated in the project, which started in June 2023 and ended in September 2023, were Jana Rajh Plohl, Pika Pipan, Gaja Slapnik, Klara Vrabl and Kaja Večko. The project leader was Dr. Anja Moric from the Department of Ethology and Cultural Anthropology at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana. Other co-mentors of the project were Dr. Tanja Žigon, Department of Translation at the Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana, and Primož Primec, the President of the Society of Native Gottschee Settlers. Urška Gruden from the Faculty of Arts of the University of Ljubljana was responsible for the administration and coordination of the project.

The process of setting up the ethnological collection of the Gottscheers

In the attic of the main house, the outbuilding and under the adjacent hayrack, we have set up a collection of objects used by the Gottscheers from the mid-19th to the mid-20th century in their work in the fields and in their daily lives, such as dormouse traps, scales, agricultural tools, beehives, etc. In addition, two models of Gottschee villages made by forester Anton Prelesnik are exhibited in the outbuilding.

The students conducted several interviews with Gottscheers from Občice and the surrounding area and, as far as possible, recorded Gottscheer expressions for the exhibited objects. Nowadays only a few can speak the Gottscheer language. In the interviews we inquired about their daily life, customs, beekeeping, fruit trees, etc. Through the conversations with the locals, we learned firsthand how the people of the Gottschee region used to live. Sometimes the conversation also revolved around the differences between generations. In one of the interviews with Johannes Hans Jaklitsch, the topic of pasture farming came up. We compared how differently young people grow up today. Mr. Jaklitsch regretted that the games that children used to play in the pasture are no longer played by the younger generations.

Translation work

During the project, two students from the Department of Translation translated a section from the book “Abbildung und Beschreibung der südwest- und östlichen Wenden, Illyrer und Slaven” by Balthasar Hacquet. In it Hacquet described the Gottscheers; therefore the texts were also used for the exhibition panels. This was the first time we were confronted with a 19th century German text that had to be translated into Slovenian. Although we updated the text for today’s readers, we tried to keep the original writing style, as we felt it was important to preserve it. Later, all the texts on the exhibition panels, which were originally written in Slovenian, were translated into English and German. In addition, the project produced an information brochure for visitors about the ethnological collection and the orchard, also in three languages.

Anyone interested in the historical and ethnological features of the Kočevje region, such as: dormouse hunting, peddling, waggon driving, fruit growing, etc., is invited to visit the renovated ethnological collection and the orchard with old fruit varieties of the Association of Gottscheer Native Settlers, which was opened on September 18, 2023.

The authors of the article, Klara Vrabl and Kaja Večko, are students at the Department of Translation Studies, Faculty of Arts, University of Ljubljana.

In September 2023, 130 years have passed since the arrival of the railway in Kočevje. Read more.

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For 6 years, the Days of Gottscheer Culture have been trying to answer all of the above and many other questions. The event came to life in 2015 at the initiative of individuals from the Municipality of Dolenjske Toplice. The Mayor Jože Muhič with colleagues and representatives of relevant associations came up with the idea at a meeting of the Municipality of Dolenjske Toplice. The aim of the Days of Gottscheer Culture was to preserve the heritage of the native Gottscheer inhabitants, who have inhabited this area for almost 700 years. Indeed, everything is also perceived in the broader concept of tourism development in this area.

It started in 2015

Already during the preparations of the first Days of Gottscheer Culture they came up with the idea of handing over the “relay” to the organisers who are next in line. In fact, with the support of the mayors of the Municipality of Dolenjske Toplice, Semič and Kočevje and at the suggestion of the Association of Gottscheer Organisations, the event takes place every year in another municipality of the former Gottschee language island, and has thus become a project of three municipalities.

However, it is not so unusual that the idea was born in the Municipality of Dolenjske Toplice, since we are proud that our municipality is still home to the Gottscheers, who still speak the Gottschee language, cook old Gottscheer dishes and nurture their identity in numerous other ways.

The main purpose of the event is to present the living cultural heritage of the Gottscheers (language, work of societies, presentation of customs and habits, etc.) as well as the inclusion of people of other nationalities in the events and their preparation to the general public, because all citizens can take part in the preparation of events with their work and ideas. Besides the Association itself, two societies are particularly active in the event organisation in Dolenjske Toplice and Semič, i.e. the Society of Native Gottschee Settlers and the Mošnice – Moshnitze Institute.

First Days of Gottscheer Culture in Dolenjske Toplice

The first Days of Gottscheer Culture officially kicked off by setting up a maypole in Kočevske Poljane, with which we have tried to draw attention to the linguistic, architectural and other heritage of Gottscheers, former residents of German descent under the auspices of the local municipality. This was followed by a colourful week of events, and it should be particularly emphasised that for this purpose we reopened the legendary Marica Gril’s Inn in Kočevske Poljane. It was reopened for at least one week during the events.

However, we realised two additional new features for the first Days of Gottscheer Culture; i.e. in Kočevske Poljane we set up an information board for the village that lists and marks all the buildings that belong to the Immovable Cultural Heritage Register. The regular feature of the Days of the Gottscheer Culture include the following: the painting extempore, hikes, photography courses, conversation evenings, performance of a folklore group and folk singers, holy masses, children’s workshops, an opening and closing event, cooking courses, etc.

In addition to the afore-mentioned, TIC Dolenjske Toplice, Cultural and Congress Center of Dolenjske Toplice, Dolenjske Toplice Primary School, Dolenjske Toplice DPŽ, Association of Winegrowers Dolenjske Toplice, the Toplice–Poljane Parish, the Kočevske Poljane and Pod Srebotnikom village communities, the Novo mesto Fire Brigade and Laško Union Brewery also participated in the implementation of the programme. The days ended with the handing over of the relay to the Municipality of Kočevje that organised the events in 2016. In addition, the Municipality of Kočevje created a complete visual identity for the events.

In 2017, the Days of Gottscheer Culture were organised by the Municipality of Semič, and the Municipality of Dolenjske Toplice took over in 2018. In 2019, the turn came to the Municipality of Kočevje and this year, despite the coronovirus epidemic, the Municipality of Semič more than successfully carried out the Days of Gottscheer Culture at the end of August.

We are also very glad that Borut Pahor, the President of the Republic of Slovenia, was the honorary patron from the very beginning of the Days of Gottscheer Culture. The project is also co-financed by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia.

In our previous post you can read more about Christmas customs and beliefs in the Kočevje region.

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